HVAC Air Filters Right To Your Door

Any reasonably good heating, air conditioning and ventilation company will advise its customers to regularly check their  air filter.

But only an exceptional company will go the extra mile – literally – by offering a service that will bring fresh air filters to their front door.

Charlie’s Tropic Heating & Air Conditioning has been going the extra mile for customers in northeast Florida since 1998. But we’re particularly enthused about this new service because it positively demonstrates our commitment to doing our part in seeing that your HVAC system – arguably one of the largest financial investments you’ve made in your home – runs as efficiently as possible and meets, if not exceeds, its projected lifespan.

A real “softie” produces hard results
It would be a mistake to equate the soft, “meshy” character of an air filter with the importance it plays in your HVAC system. Just like the air filter in your car, the filter in your HVAC system is designed to trap dust, dirt and debris – not to mention mold and pet dander (if you have a fuzzy animal wandering around your home).

Once the air filter becomes clogged, the lodged debris has nowhere else to go but down and out. This is why you might see a pile of dust and dirt at the base of your indoor unit. And this is when real trouble can begin.

A dirty air filter restricts air flow, which causes your air conditioner to work longer in the summer to cool your home and your furnace to work longer in the winter to warm it. (And yes: Charlie’s makes a distinction between an HVAC system working “longer” rather than “harder.” A dirty filter will undercut your air conditioner’s efficiency, causing it to take longer for it to produce a temperature that matches the setting you’ve programmed on your thermostat. And the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency supports our view, saying that all this extra energy consumption can increase your utility bill by as much as 15 percent.)

Dirty filters put system longevity and health at risk
Like a falling domino, a filter choked with dust and dirt can trigger other equipment problems – all of which can undercut your HVAC system’s lifespan (generally, 10 to 15 years for an air conditioner and about 15 to 20 years for a furnace). In the worst cases, a dirty filter can even cause the HVAC to shut down in a form of revolt.

Most importantly, a dirty filter can impugn your home’s indoor air quality. You might not notice it at first; poor indoor air usually “sneaks up” on many people in the form of scratchy throats, frequent coughing and eye and nose irritation.

By contrast, the EPA points out that indoor air that remains clean and filtered can:

• Reduce the risk of respiratory disease
• Mitigate allergy and asthma symptoms
• Lessen the intensity and duration of colds and viruses
• Improve the quality of your sleep, which affects your overall health and well-being

When Charlie’s says that dirt is the biggest threat to your HVAC system, we genuinely mean it. This is why we recommend that a filter should be checked every month by holding it up to a light or the sun. If you can’t see through the filter, it’s time to change it. Unlike a car, whose mileage is a good barometer of the frequency of oil and filter changes, it’s impossible to pinpoint how much “mileage” you place on your air conditioner, especially if it runs frequently.

This is another reason why Charlie’s is so enthused about its new air filter delivery service: it’s guaranteed to put clean filters in our customers’ hands – so that they can avert a potential breakdown or catastrophic system failure.

Visit Charlie’s website and place your order today so that we can go the extra mile for you – and right to your front door.